Death Sheep
| Climate/Terrain: | Temperate hills |
|---|---|
| Frequency: | Very rare |
| Organization: | Herd |
| Activity Cycle: | Day |
| Diet: | Carnivore |
| Intelligence: | Animal (1) |
| Treasure: | Wool (if you can get it) |
| Alignment: | Neutral evil |
| No. Appearing: | 2-20 |
| Armor Class: | 7 |
| Movement: | 15 |
| Hit Dice: | 1+1 |
| THAC0: | 19 |
| No. of Attacks: | 1 bite |
| Damage/Attack: | 2-8 |
| Special Attacks: | Poisonous bite |
| Special Defenses: | Immune to fear, charm, and hold spells |
| Magic Resistance: | Nil |
| Size: | S-M (3-4' tall at shoulder) |
| Morale: | Fearless (19) |
| XP Value: | 175 |
From some unknown source, these deadly sheep roam the verdant hillsides where they live, ravaging anything in their paths. From a distance, they seem to be nothing more than wild, somewhat dirty sheep. Up close, however, the sheep can be seen to have an evil nature. Their large mouths are filled with long, sharp black teeth that drip vile ichor.
These sheep attack any living thing that they can find, fearing nothing and fighting to the death. Because of their ferociousness, the sheep make all attacks at +2 to hit and damage. If a victim is bitten, he must make a save vs. poison at +2 or become as mad as the sheep are in 1-10 days. The victim's teeth gradually turn black and become sharp and pointed, and finally the victim is totally consumed with insanity and berserkly attacks any living thing that it senses, using only its teeth.
The only way to save an infected creature is to cast remove curse, cure disease, and neutralize poison spells upon it before half of the 1-10 day cycle is complete. Any of the above three spells cast singly only slows down the progress of the disease by one day.
Any creature consumed by the disease cannot be tamed or controlled in any fashion. Such creatures can be captured and penned up, or perhaps tied up and released later. A favorite battle tactic of one general was to capture several of these sheep, place them in boxed carts, and release them in the direction of his enemies. It worked well until one sheep turned around and looked back; then things got a little sticky.
All maddened and surviving victims of the death sheep, except other sheep, live only as many days as they have hit points. Therefore, only the death sheep are ever found, and they do not attack one another. Death sheep typically travel in flocks (woe to the unwary wolf!) and eat animal flesh, be it fresh or rotten. Birds, reptiles, and all other animals (except mammals) are immune to the poisonous bite of the death sheep. It is speculated that the death sheep are a product of some mage's experiments with rabies, and rumors hold that one particularly ambitious death sheep named Basil (9 hp) is their leader.